You may see staff and volunteers wearing this fabulous shirt throughout the month!

In July 2020, in response to society’s growing awareness of social justice issues, we launched an employee-driven diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEIA) committee to create positive change at the Zoo and in our community.

The DEIA committee has worked largely behind the scenes for the past year to build a more inclusive culture, ultimately adopting this mission statement:

Brevard Zoo is dedicated to sharing the joy of nature to help wildlife and people thrive. As a cornerstone of this mission, we embrace diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility. We believe that these qualities foster valuable talents, perspectives and personality traits that make the Zoo a stronger, more welcoming organization.

Employees, volunteers and guests of all races, religions, sexual orientations, gender identities, exceptionalities, ages and nationalities have the right to feel safe, respected and valued. We reject racism, religious discrimination, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, ageism and xenophobia. Simply stated, we will not tolerate acts of hate.

We acknowledge the complex nature of this journey, and we are committed to demonstrating continuous self-reflection, engaging in courageous conversations and devoting the resources required to create transformative change both in our Zoo and beyond.

In honor of Pride Month, we are pleased to launch our first public DEIA initiative, a “spirit week” designed to celebrate our LGBT+ team and community members—and we invite all of our guests to participate in the activities we have planned:

Sunday, June 6: Silly hats and hair
Tuesday, June 8: Rainbow apparel
Wednesday, June 9: Wacky socks
Friday, June 11: Zoo apparel; Pride-themed animal enrichment
Saturday, June 12: Tie-dye apparel; bring a white shirt for a tie-dye craft

We hope you can join in on the fun, and we look forward to hosting more DEIA celebrations in the future.